“There is no precise and broadly accepted definition of neglected disease,” states Professor Alex Broadbent, Head of Philosophy at the University of Johannesburg. Currently, the class of ‘neglected tropical diseases’ or NTDs, ranges from soil-transmitted helminthiasis to snakebites. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes the varied classification as such:

“They are named neglected because these disease persist exclusively in the poorest and the most marginalized communities, and have been largely eliminated elsewhere and thus are often forgotten… Most can be prevented or eliminated.”

(World Health Organization, 2010b)

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